Painting Asbestos Siding Shingles

You can power wash any loose paint or simply scrape and remove any.

Painting asbestos siding shingles.

Paint for asbestos cement siding works by creating a permanent polymer based barrier between the asbestos and the elements. Besides the need to create a good surface for painting asbestos siding there are two other areas of concern. Our method of choice to first apply zinsser peel stop triple thick primer which is a water based acrylic binding primer designed to penetrate and stop previous coatings from peeling. When you say asbestos shingles i presume you mean asbestos siding shingles.

One concern when repainting this type of siding is the small gaps between the shingles. Begin by analyzing a paint sample for lead content. You know the nice thing about asbestos shingles is they never rot. The first is the possible and almost certain presence of lead based paint on the siding and the second is the asbestos in the siding itself.

Unfortunately asbestos never remains truly untouched because of nature. These are easily prepared and easy to repaint. And after you prime them you can use a standard house paint. Painting asbestos siding is often a much better alternative than trying to remove it.

It s not difficult at all to paint asbestos siding as one of its benefits is that paint easily adheres to it and it is very durable and can last for decades without chipping or cracking. Allow the primer to dry completely. Begin painting the siding with your choice of brushes and rollers making sure to check often for runs. You can roll it or brush it on but make sure you get under the small lip at the bottom of each asbestos siding shingle.

After it dries thoroughly then it s a good idea to prime them. Untouched asbestos is just as safe as any other siding or insulation. The danger of asbestos lies in the particles that escape and can be inhaled. Prepping your asbestos siding for repainting requires a lighter touch one involving lots of water to prevent dust from wafting up around the shingles.

Normally you d scrap down the old paint from your siding but doing that with asbestos can release dangerous particles into the air.